SMS Pro Aviation Safety Software Blog 4 Airlines & Airports

How Do You Set Key Performance Indicators

Most safety managers consider aligning their airline or airport's key performance indicators with organizational objectives, such as

"Lost Time Injuries,"

"Employee Turnover," and

"Seats Sold."

These KPIs are commonly

operational,

safety-related or

financial.

There are certainly several other categories of potential KPIs to consider. Modern aviation safety management systems (SMS) software programs have the ability to easily establish and monitor your airline or airport's key performance indicators.

In this post, we outline six other source categories for your KPIs. Your aviation SMS program probably already tracks these items. Modern, web-based aviation SMS software tools allow easy monitoring of these KPIs.

Data Sources for Aviation Key Performance Indicators

Quality data sources depend on the sophistication and completeness of your aviation safety management system software. Many today have multiple classification categories to classify issues in their aviation SMS software programs. Your airline or airport's SMS software should have the ability to easily select which classification parameters you want as your KPIs.

Some common classification categories include:

1. Human Factors as KPIs

Examples:

Judgment and Decision Making

Perception Errors

Inadequate Supervision

2. Root Causes as KPIs

Examples:

Misunderstood Verbal Communication;

Procedures Followed Incorrectly;

Decided Not To Train

3. Hazard from Hazard Register

Examples:

Fatigue

Birds

Construction Equipment

4. Aircraft or Vehicle Parts

Examples:

Transfer pumps

Cargo door latch

Hydraulic system

5. Locations in Combination with Other Classifications

Examples:

North America

Middle East

South America

6. Types of Issue

Examples:

Flight Operations

Unsafe Runway Conditions

Ground Operations

Summing Up KPI Category Sources

Each aviation SMS software program has their own strengths and weaknesses. If you don't currently use an aviation SMS software database, choose one that has the ability to include multiple data sources for KPIs.

If you need some inspiration for your airline or airport's KPIs, check out the following resources.

How are you tracking your KPIs? Here are some very useful videos to see an example of how you can do this.